Kentucky Vacation

Last week Meric, Mel, the dogs and I all went on a vacation to visit Glendale Campground. It has been 2 1/2 months since we moved away and we were very excited to see all of our friends and "family".

We decided to take 2 days to make the drive up. About halfway we stopped at a campground and camped. It was nice to be able to relax and take our time on the trip up.

Our campsite at night. Check out the alien next to the fire.

We were able to stop at the Lodge Factory Store in South Pittsburgh, TN on the way. Meric and I both are huge fans of Lodge cast iron products. I also wanted to grab a geocache located near the store.

Cast Iron Man (Spoiler: cache hidden in left shoulder)

 Sunday afternoon we were pulling into our old home, Glendale Campground. I don't think I realized exactly how much I missed it until we got there. It really did feel like going home. It was wonderful to see everyone and even the dogs seemed happy to be able to run around in their old field. To make things feel even more familiar we stayed in the same spot we use to live in. (Our friend had moved his trailer into the spot we were in after we left. He was actually out of town while we were there and offered to let us stay in his trailer during our stay. It was very generous of him and very nice to be in our familiar area.)

Another reason to visit Kentucky was so that I could visit my orthodontist. I was almost done with my braces when we moved and I had scheduled to have them removed during our visit. First thing Monday morning I was freed from my braces. My orthodontist fast tracked my retainer so I was able to have it by that afternoon. I felt so nice and weird to get my mouth back after 2 1/2 years of braces. I love it!

First pic without the braces!

Ever since we moved Meric and I have looked forward to this vacation. We had a list of people to see and things we wanted to do. Luckily the weather was nice and people's schedules worked out so that we could see and do just about everything we wanted to do. We went to dinner or lunch with different people just about everyday. One of those meals was at Louisville's new Brazilian restaurant with the Smiths and the Underwoods.

We also "forced" Emma to skip school one day so that we could spend the day together. We introduced her to geocaching and had a very successful day of caching.

The cache was hidden halfway down the long and dark tunnel.

 That Saturday we surprised her by taking her on The Color Run. We had a blast and I made sure everyone got very colorful. (Yes I did drag Emma to the ground and rolled her through PURPLE!) 

Emma, me and our friend Laurie getting ready to start

Emma and I are in the middle of all that COLOR

By the end Emma and I were definitely the most colorful

Our trip also coincided with the last Halloween weekend at Glendale.

Dave wore the mask and scared all the kids.Mel thought the mask was funny and just laughed.

Mel dressed up as a monkey and I took her and a friend's kids through the campground trick or treating. (No I didn't carry a bag for "Mel" to collect candy. After a week of eating out I knew I would regret having extra candy hanging around. I did let Mel have a watermelon sucker which she enjoyed very much and got everything very sticky.)

Runaway Monkey!

Mel really loved being back in Kentucky. She had all of our Glendale friends to entertain and play with her. The bugs are so bad in Georgia that we haven't spent a lot of time outside so Mel really loved being able to play outside. She got to play in her Johnny Jumper and we introduced her to the swing, which she LOVED! It made me sad that we left and couldn't stay.

Mel can make even this outfit look good!

Isn't that the happiest face you have ever seen?

Mel also did an amazing job of going with the flow of our busy days. We would be out and going all day long and she handled everything really well. She also was very good in all of the restaurants and everyone was impressed with what a good girl she is. I love my little monkey!

We left early Sunday morning and headed home. We had left the car in Kentucky when we moved so we towed it home. That worked out well so that one of us could keep Mel entertained on the long car ride. It was very hard to leave Glendale again. Everything is so comfortable and homey there for us. We just fit there. Maybe someday we will get to live there again, but this last visit was just wonderful. I couldn't have planned a better trip if I had tried.

Geocaching Georgia: The Explanation

Meric and I like to geocache. It is like a treasure hunt with a hand held GPS unit. Some are big and some are small. Some are in the woods and some are right next to your favorite store. Once you have a GPS unit, geocaching is fun and free.

Georgia State Parks have a geocaching challenge. At participating parks you can pick up a "Geo-tour Passport". This is a little pamphlet with a list of state parks and a place to put a stamp. 46 different state parks are participating in this challenge. Each park has a special geocache with a special stamp hidden inside. Once you find the cache you can mark your pamphlet with that park's stamp.

After you collect 15 stamps you earn a bronze coin specially designed for Georgia State parks. 30 stamps gets you the silver coin and 40 earns you the gold. (These coins have no monetary value, they are just a fun prize for your accomplishment.)

The state parks involved are spread all over the state which makes this challenge... well challenging. It also is a great excuse to travel and explore our new state. Meric and I are excited to complete this challenge. (Of course we will let Mel tag along.)

We will keep you updated on our progress!

Little Miss Mel: 8 Months Old

Mel is growing up so fast I can hardly keep up. She is funny and active.

She loves to ride in shopping carts and goes out of her way to make eye contact and smile at people walking by. Sometimes it is hard to shop because we are always stopping so that people can say hi to our happy baby.

Mel's bottom two teeth started coming in last month. She loves to flash them and will have a very toothy grin... once she gets more teeth. Her teeth also enhance what I call her "mean kid" face. I have a hard time getting a picture of that face though because she loves to smile for the camera. She is such an ornery kid.

She started crawling this past month and is keeping me on my toes. Mel is also sitting up on her own and pulling herself up to a stand. I really wasn't kidding when I said I couldn't keep up with her.

The dog food bin looks so much better without the sticker

Who needs toys when you can pull off the heat vent?

Mel is starting to enjoy different kinds of foods too. She loves yogurt, pear baby food, and strawberries. But her most favorite foods are whatever mommy and daddy are eating.

She loves the dogs too. She loves to climb on them, pull their tails and laughs when she sees them. When they are playing outside and running around, Mel loves to yell and squeal at them.

She has such a big and funny personality. Mel is a go with the flow type of kid. She is ready to follow us into any adventure. I love my funny little monkey face!